The UBS Evening Television & Movie News 10.08.09
Posted by George H. Sirois on 10.08.2009
A quick look at the latest theatrical and DVD releases, the trailer for The Crazies, a reboot that shouldn’t be a reboot, last week’s box office report and guest columnist Ben Piper chimes in with his contribution to “Re-Writing Miss-tory.” All this and the returning Andy Critchell bringing the goods in The “Memo to Gavin Hood” Edition…
Welcome everyone to the latest edition of the UBS Evening Movie News. I'm George H. Sirois, and if you're on Twitter, you can find me HERE! And don't forget, for all of you who are new to 411Mania.com, make sure you check out all of our zones. We have some of the best writers on the Internet right here, and we love to hear from all of you! So keep coming back to read what we have for you, make us your homepage and if you have Facebook, make sure to join our group HERE!
As always, I have the button available here for you to send in your pre-order deposit for my upcoming novel. A big thank you to everyone who already sent in their deposits, and just so you know, when you do send it in, expect to see a special surprise from me to you in your e-mail once I get the first 50.
Oh, one other book-related plug. To make it easier for friends, family, co-workers and anyone else who want to send in their $2 deposits, I have set up a special blogspot page for people to visit. Feel free to check it out HERE!
And now, on with the news!
SYBIL THE SOOTHSAYER
UPCOMING MOVIES
Couples Retreat: A comedy centered around four couples who settle into a tropical-island resort for a vacation.
The commercials for this got a couple laughs out of me, and the fact that Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn wrote this together the way they wrote Made gives me hope. I give credit to my friend Kent for saying this on his Facebook page: "I hope Ralphie doesn't shoot his eye out at the box office this weekend."
Credit: TheMovieBox.net
DVD NEWS
It makes sense that I should give you this piece of DVD news now since I finally got to see G.I.JOE: The Rise of Cobra last week. And you know what? I enjoyed it, despite its problems. Some of the acting was wooden at best, and there were a bit too many flashbacks clumped together, but you know what? What I saw on the screen had a lot of similarities to what I watched as a kid. From the undersea base to the nano-mite weapons to the Snake-Eyes / Storm Shadow rivalry (I still didn't care for the mouth on Snake-Eyes, what was wrong with the regular black helmet he wore in the show?), this was a solid representation of what I grew up watching. My score for it is similar to what Steve Gustafson said in his review, a 7 out of 10.
With that in mind, allow me to announce that Paramount Home Entertainment has just nailed a release date to G.I. JOE: The Rise of Cobra, bringing the film to DVD and Blu-Ray Disc in November.
The 2-disc DVD version will feature an anamorphic widescreen transfer of the film with Dolby Digital 5.1 audio and a Commentary Track by director Stephen Sommers and producer Bob Ducsay. (Now tell me this. If Sommers was supposedly kicked out of the editing offices, why is he doing the commentary track to this? I'm interested in getting this already just to hear what he has to say.) Also included is a Digital Copy and the Featurettes "The Big Bang Theory and "Next-Gen Action: The Amazing Visual FX and Design of G.I. JOE."
The Blu-Ray version will also arrive on 2 discs, featuring a 1080p high definition transfer that is supplemented by a DTS 5.1 HD Master Audio track. The release will include the same bonus materials as the DVD version.
The two-disc DVD and Blu-ray packages will also feature augmented reality technology that will allow owners to participate in an exclusive 3D holographic G.I. JOE combat experience, utilizing their webcams and a special website. Fans will be able to choose between SNAKE EYES and STORM SHADOW, two of the most popular G.I. JOE and COBRA characters, and battle against their enemies one-on-one in an immersive 3D video game.
G.I. JOE: The Rise Of Cobra comes to stores on November 3 for $24.99 on DVD and $39.99 on Blu-Ray Disc.
Credit: DVDReview.com
MOVIE TRAILER OF THE WEEK: The Crazies
Yes, another horror remake is on the horizon. I have trailers for both the original and the new one here so you can judge for yourself which one you would rather see.
First, the 1973 George Romero film…
And now, the 2009 Breck Eisner film…
JIM WEBBING AND HIS IT'S THE HONEST TRUTH DEPARTMENT
Reboot, No! Revival, Yes!: Adrien Brody is boarding to star in "Robert Rodriguez's Predators," Fox's reboot of the sci-fi franchise being directed by Nimrod Antal. Rodriguez is producing with Elizabeth Avellan.
Topher Grace is in negotiations to join the action-adventure movie, to which Alice Braga ("I Am Legend"), Mahershalalhashbaz Ali ("The 4400"), Walt Goggins ("The Shield"), Rodriguez mainstay Danny Trejo and UFC fighter Oleg Taktarov have also been cast.
Written by Rodriguez, Alex Litvak and Michael Finch, the script follows a group of elite warrior-types who are being hunted by members of a race of merciless alien trackers called Predators.
Brody is a man who ends up inheriting the mantle of leader and is known as a hunter of men. Grace would play an accountant-type whose unassuming facade masks a dangerous serial killer.
Braga is the tough female killer. Ali is a man not afraid to die, Goggins is the loose canon of the group and Taktarov is a former Russian special ops agent.
Trejo, already cast, is Cuchillo, a hardened warrior with twin uzis strapped to his back.
Shooting begins next month in Hawaii then moves to moves to Rodriguez's Troublemaker Studios in Austin. The movie is slated for a July 9, 2010, release.
Now, am I happy that there's going to be a new Predator movie? Sure. I enjoyed parts 1 & 2 very much, they were two very different stories that found a way to link together, the Alan Silvestri theme is very iconic and they each have more than their share of memorable moments. Now, about this "reboot of the sci-fi franchise" stuff? That's where I have an issue, and it's not the first time I've had this issue.
Last year, when The Incredible Hulk came out, I made a point to say in this report and on the podcast that there was no need to completely reboot from the 2003 film. Since the film started out with Bruce Banner already on the run, Louis Letterier could have come up with a creative way to recap what had happened in the first film during the opening credits and wouldn't have had to change the rest of the film at all. That's the same case here. The first film took place in 1987 and the second one took place in 1997. There's no reason to say that neither film "really happened" since all Rodriguez has to do is throw out a couple mentions of the events in the first two films as a nod to both the films and the fans of the films. If he does that, he'll get nothing but respect and gratitude from the fans. Trust me, Robert. A little bit of acknowledgement goes a long way.
Credit: Hollywood Reporter
A first-look deal for movies being made a second time: With "Transformers," director Michael Bay presides over Paramount's biggest budget franchise, he's ready to become the studio's go-to-guy for low cost films, too.
Paramount Pictures has signed a first look producing deal with Platinum Dunes, the genre division run by Bay, Brad Fuller and Andrew Form.
The troika bring a well-established track record for mobilizing low-cost, high-budget genre films, most of them remakes of horror classics that include "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre," "Friday the 13th," "The Amityville Horror" and the recently completed reboot of "A Nightmare on Elm Street," which stars Jackie Early Haley as the iconic maniac Freddy Krueger.
"We offer a valuable service to the studio, especially with all this turmoil going on in the business right now, in that we do things cheaply, and we've had a lot of success with it," Bay said. "Through the first two `Transformers' films, I've gotten to know the studio very well, and I've got a good rhythm with them. I'm excited about this."
The pact marks the first term deal given by Adam Goodman since he became president of the Paramount Pictures Film Group.
"What makes us so excited to have Platinum Dunes here at Paramount is how Michael, Brad and Andrew carved out an important niche for themselves over the past few years," Goodman said. "They have consistently created excitingly commercial movies that have proven to be a formidable force at the box office. We look forward to a long and productive partnership with them."
Now, with this first-look deal in place, does this mean that Platinum Dunes is going to start focusing on producing original material instead of just throwing together one remake after another? Or is this a way for Paramount to get involved with other studios' franchises?
If this were any other production company, I wouldn't give this a second thought, but with Platinum Dunes, you have to think about these things because all they're known for is for playing with other people's films. I can't say too much about their quality because all I've seen is their remake of Friday the 13th, and I got a kick out of that one. (I consider myself lucky since the screenwriters Shannon & Swift are devout fans of Friday the 13th and were able to inject the necessary passion needed to make at least some of it work.) But I'm not interested in seeing the Nightmare on Elm Street one for personal reasons that I discussed at great lengths during last week's podcast.
One thing I will give Platinum Dunes credit for: they know how to make very intriguing trailers. They've become such an art form over the years that the trailers for the original movies being remade have been left way behind. However, the company also has a reputation for making movies just as slick and easy to digest with very little passion for the projects. It must be the pacing of the trailers that Paramount mentioned when they said "excitingly commercial movies."
But getting back to what I mentioned before, if Platinum Dunes is able to take the fast-paced and excitingly commercial aspects of their movies and apply them to original material, Paramount just might have something pretty good on their hands.
Credit: Variety
Boy, Isla really knows how to pick ‘em, huh?: Universal Pictures has acquired two projects that will be developed as star vehicles for Isla Fisher.
Fisher, who last starred in "Confessions of a Shopaholic," is attached to topline and produce "Life Coach," a comedy about a young woman who consults a life coach who turns out to be messed up. Liz Cackowski and Maggie Carey are writing the script.
Gary Sanchez principals Will Ferrell, Adam McKay and Chris Henchy will produce with Fisher.
Fisher is also attached to star in an untitled romantic comedy based on a French script called "Un Jour mes princes viendront" (One Day My Princes Will Come). The studio wouldn't disclose the logline but has hired Audrey Wells ("Under the Tuscan Sun") to write the script.
Alain Chabot and Stephanie Danan will produce through Wam Films, which most recently completed Eddie Murphy starrer "A Thousand Words" for DreamWorks.
Hearing the quick blurb about "Life Coach" has me shaking my head in wonder about what projects are being put on Isla Fisher's desk. Here is a very talented actress who knows how to bring the maximum amount of laughs from her character, and she's just getting wasted on shit like Confessions of a Shopaholic.
This can't be the only kind of material written for actresses these days, and if it is, there needs to be some serious overhauling done in the chick-flick genre. If the dismal box office of Love Happens is any indication, the intended audience may be feeling these movies are getting stale. Hopefully the right people are taking notice and demanding better scripts that would be worth the time of someone as talented as Fisher.
ANDY CRITCHELL'S INTERACTIVE BABE PHOTO NEWS BRIEF WITH ANDY CRITCHELL
Hey there everyone! I'm back after taking last week off, and I brought with me a special treat; Miss Tiffany Selby. This blonde stunner is 26 years old and she hails from Jacksonville, FL. She was Playmate of the month for July 2007. Let's get a good look at her:
Tiffany has her own site which you can check out HERE. And don't forget to come back next week for another gorgeous gal.
RE-WRITING MISS-TORY
This has become a very interesting new segment for The UBS Evening Television & Movie News, and it's gotten quite a few 411 writers anxious to step forward and put their spin on writing memos to various directors. I have to give Jasper another dose of thanks for his contribution last week. His main issue with The Wrestler and his suggestion on how to fix it made perfect sense with Randy's character and would have taken away the one major problem that the hardcore fans had with the film.
This week, we have Fact or Fiction extraordinaire Ben Piper doing his part to fix the 2009 Gavin Hood film…
To: Gavin Hood, Director; X-Men Origins: Wolverine
From: Ben Piper, Creative Consultant
Mr. Hood,
After reading your final filming script for your new movie X-Men Origins: Wolverine I do have to say that I was stoked at the thought of seeing a stand-alone movie with the Logan/Wolverine character being the central focus. Sure, he's been the main character for three previous X-Men movies so far, but to see his origin story executed on-screen would personally be a thrill for me to behold.
Yes, I must admit, I've been a comic book geek since my childhood, so when I was given the chance to be a creative consultant on this particular undertaking I was particularly thrilled.
That said, after reading the script, I do have some qualms. I truly hope you take the time to take these to heart, for I truly feel like I am speaking on behalf of every comic book fan that has enjoyed for the most part, seeing his childhood heroes brought to visceral life on the big screen thus far.
This script that I have just read does have some pluses, to be sure, but for everything that is done right, there are several more that are done wrong.
First off, there are too many minor superfluous characters present. This is the same thing that greatly plagued the previous film of the series. While I understand that you had nothing to do with that altogether, it bears mentioning in that you are about to seemingly make the same mistake.
These new characters come off as uninteresting in both their powers and their personalities. Either they have been seen before (With regards to John Wraith, his power was used and utilized by a more fully realized character in Nightcrawler in X-Men 2) or again, they just come off as bland. The Bolt character that Dominic Monaghan plays is only there to introduce the character only to be served up as fodder a little later on. It's a waste of both time and effort. The Blob? I get that the scene was written as intended comic relief, but I don't see it eliciting many laughs. It comes off as forced and lame; obvious jokes being made for the sake of simply filling the run time. Weapon 0? Jettison him quickly. I get that we are meant to dislike him from the get go, but again, he is just like the rest of the bunch for the most part. Uninteresting an unimportant to the storyline other than to fill it out. His death at the end of the whole helicopter chase sequence doesn't come off as the great bad-ass rallying cry for the central character that was intended. It's just there mostly to show off Wolvie's new badass hardware.
While I get that in this script that these characters are required to move the plot along, they serve no purpose other than to just be there and to do just that. None of them really are needed or required in the long run. Cut the fat, streamline the product to more utilize what really works, and move on from there.
Instead, I would suggest that you focus on the main Wolverine/Sabretooth sibling rivalry that has been already been set up previously. Utilize that and fill that out more as the driving force that pushes Logan into agreeing to being Stryker's guinea pig in ultimately becoming Weapon X. Sure, you have Creed "killing" his love, only for it to be to be a double cross, but it would result in much more in the long run if you intensify in on that whole narrative thread rather than go off on incidental tangents concerning the boring characters as this current script mandates.
Now, with regards to the more higher profile new characters that you plan on introducing; Deadpool and Gambit.
Deadpool is the exception to the rule I just laid out. His character is not only interesting, but charismatic and engaging as well. But in this script? He's merely quickly introduced before disappearing until the final act. I highly suggest that you beef up his role greatly, and make him Creed's counterpart in luring Logan in to the point that he agrees to becoming Weapon X. He could easily fill the void of being the secondary bait that Weapon 0 was meant to be in this script, in that Logan doesn't like him from the get-go, and now he's here causing problems and being all verbal as he tends to be. (He is The Merc With The Mouth after all…)
Have him ‘miraculously' escape after the helicopter sequence, and you still have the final fight you have planned in place, even after you seemingly have chosen to neuter him in taking away his mouth. His trash talk in this regard would've been golden. But whatever.
Gambit is a cool character and at a certain point I understand why he was included. A big selling point of the X-Men movies is the factor of which character not previously seen will be included in the next one. While he does fit this bill, (cool, popular character not previously seen, etc.) so does Deadpool.
The point that I am getting at is that Gambit, while the notion of him being in the film is a cool one, is out of place in this particular series of events. He was not introduced (i.e. first appearance) until the early 90s and was never ret-conned into the Wolverine origin story once Marvel rebooted the entire universe later on. He does not fit or belong. While I freely admit that what is written for him works for the most part, I have to say that countless other X-Men characters would have sufficiently filled in for him and provided the same plot points required.
All that said, I now have to hit you with my biggest problem that I have found.
All throughout this script is sure to be thrilling and enthralling action set pieces. What has me the most concerned about it all is the fact that while you have proven to be a solid Oscar winning director in your own right previously, this is your first foray into big-budget summer action movie tentpole territory.
In the simplest terms, I must ask you to step away from the wire-work.
Seriously, step away.
All of these action set pieces you have planned require numerous characters to defy both gravity and physics by leaping great distances or twirling and somersaulting several times through the air. As it reads on the page as written, it all looks good on paper from my standpoint. However, there's a difference between what is set forth on the written page and the actual execution that takes place as is viewed on the big screen.
I fear that you're going to rely too greatly on what has become a bit of a crutch lately in these types of films. While it can be a great and beneficial tool to the filmmaker when done right and appropriately, I feel that it is often misused/overused in recent times..
It's one thing to make a man testing a certain suit made of iron hover in mid air, or for The One to dodge bullets miraculously. Those are both examples of wire-work being used properly, in that, you don't see it for what it is.
But I have to be honest. After reading this script I fear that you are treading into territory you should not travel. Wire-work is the easy way out, in that it's cheap and cost effective, to be sure. But it's also easy to spot from a mile a way if not done right. Today's audiences are more than savvy to Hollywood's machinations. And if what I suspect is true, you're about to make a HUGE mistake.
For all the presumptuously cool flips and flying around and Sabretooth making like a big cat by running on all fours and scaling the sides of buildings ideas you have in mind? All cool concepts in and of themselves to be sure, but if you're going to rely heavily on wire-work to make the bulk of that happen? It will not in any way come across as believable. And that will take any savvy movie-goer out of the experience that you are trying to create. You won't be giving them a hard-hitting enjoyable popcorn flick like you plan on presenting and that they're hoping to receive.
And that is a recipe for a disaster, my good sir. Another creative dagger in the heart of the franchise.
I truly hope you take all of this to heart, and I wish you luck.
Sincerely,
Ben Piper
And that's a wrap for Chapter 133 of The UBS Evening Movie News! For Ben Piper and Andy Critchell, I'm George H. Sirois and we'll see you next week!
